


Is This Meta-Gaming, Or Are You Trying To Flirt With Me?

by Biblionerd



Category: Rooster Teeth/Achievement Hunter/Funhaus RPF
Genre: D&D group, F/F, F/M, Friends to Lovers, Getting Together, M/M, Multi, Polyamory
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-06-27
Updated: 2016-06-27
Packaged: 2018-07-18 15:59:46
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 9,893
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7321564
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Biblionerd/pseuds/Biblionerd
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>They'd all been friends for years, tabletop gaming was their communal hobby. Gavin's bard had a habit of flirting with every other player character, it didn't mean anything, until it started to.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Is This Meta-Gaming, Or Are You Trying To Flirt With Me?

**Author's Note:**

> Written for The Mavinseg Event 2016 on tumblr. 
> 
> Note: Ryan in this story is married to a lovely commercial pilot named Molly. They have a new puppy named Mouse.

“You guys want anything?” Lindsay called from the kitchen, her voice muffled from within the fridge.

“Nah, we got riot punch out here,” Michael called. Lindsay walked into the dining room carrying a Diet Coke anyway. 

“For our illustrious DM, if he ever gets here,” she explained, plonking the can next to the chair closest to the kitchen and the little card table they set up beside it to put their extra books and things, making for more room on the game table.

Gavin was sprawled against one corner of Lindsay and Michael’s couch, with Meg curled in the opposite one, intent on the cooking show playing on the television in the living room. Gavin twisted to look over the back of the couch and made grabby hands at Michael.

“Pass me some of that?” he asked, pointing at the dispenser filled with the sweet and deceptively boozy drink.

“Great, the bard’s getting drunk before the session even starts,” Michael complained, though he filled a cup from the spout. 

Gavin took the beverage and sat back into the couch with a satisfied sigh. “Nothing better than gettin’ bevved and crawling a dungeon with my buds,” he said.

“Well, once Ryan gets here,” Lindsay pointed out, just as a knock sounded on the door. “Speak of the devil, _come in_ ,” she called, and Ryan pushed open the door.

“Sorry, Daddy-duty called,” Ryan apologized.

“Always with the fuckin Daddy duty excuse,” Michael teased. “You know its just a dog, right?”

“House training waits for no man. And Molly is flying tonight, so pup won’t get out again until I get home,” Ryan shot back, dumping his bag on the card table and reaching for his Diet Coke. “What, no snacks today?”

Michael grinned and walked into the kitchen, returning with a glass pie plate and a big bowl full of apple slices. “This is called crack dip!” he crowed, putting the dishes onto the middle of the table.

Ryan groaned in protest, but reached for an apple slice and dragged it through the plate of cream cheese, chocolate and caramel dip with candy pieces sprinkled over top. Michael took a kind of sick glee in exploiting Ryan’s inability to turn down food, especially if sweets were on offer.

Meg and Gavin took their places and joined Ryan in snacking as they pulled out their character sheets and dice bags. 

“Anybody got an extra pencil?” Meg asked, and Lindsay handed her one before she’d even finished the sentence. “Thanks, babe!” Meg grinned.

“Okay, so where were we?” Ryan asked, flipping through his notebook.

Ryan guided them along the story, their characters meeting their contact who directed them to their next quest. Gavin gleefully rolled to sing a bardic song to boost the party’s charisma going into negotiations with the town elders.

“We’ll get a minging ton of gold for this one, mates,” he crowed. “Maybe, uh, you guys would be grateful enough to say thank you to the bard.” He waggled his eyebrows comically at the other players.

Michael snickered, Lindsay raised her eyebrows and Meg just rolled her eyes. They were used to Gavin’s character constantly and ridiculously making moves on every other member of the party. Between Michael’s half-orc fighter, Lindsay’s dwarf cleric and Meg’s elven rogue, they had all managed to politely dissuade Gavin’s human bard from anything more explicit than some lewd comments and a memorable attempted kiss that Gronk (Michael) had managed to barely make a dodge roll to avoid.

Gavin pouted at the lackluster response to his ardent wooing of the other characters, but shrugged as Ryan narrated their arrival in their destination, a medium sized village on the edge of a dark mysterious forest.

“In the town square you find a notice board, void of all declarations save one, a huge posted with ‘REWARD’ written in red capital letters,” Ryan said, using the deeper tone he assumed as Dungeon Master when telling the story.

“Okay, uh, I guess I go up and read the sign?” Michael replied.

“Do you speak anything other than Common and Orcish?” Ryan asked, returning to his normal speaking voice.

“Uh,” Michael stalled, checking his character sheet. “No.”

“Just Common and Sylvan,” Lindsay supplied.

“I speak Common and Elvish and Undercommon” Meg offered.

“Okay, Meg, make an intelligence roll, one d20” Ryan said.

“12 with my stat bonus,” Meg said.

“Okay, it is written in a dialect you don’t know all that well, but it seems to say there’s a monster of some kind in the forest and whoever brings the head to the prefect of the district will receive 200 gold, plus other considerations,” Ryan told her. “Or maybe they want its dick, the translation isn’t exact.”

“What the hell does ‘other considerations’ mean?” Lindsay asked, leaning back in her chair.

“It means there might be other stuff like weapons and a trip to the town hot spring in it for you it you complete the quest,” Ryan explained.

“What? It’s a set reward?” Gavin squawked. “But you let me boost party charisma!”

Ryan chuckled. “I can’t exactly spoil the story before you get there!” he pointed out. The others laughed lightly as well.

Gavin pouted as the others decided to find the local inn and questioning the locals about this monster in the forest.

“See, Gav, the charisma boost will help!” Meg tried to comfort him.

“‘S fine, I don’t need a pity boost,” he grumbled, but joined the others in chatting up the NPCs in the tavern.

Ryan always had fun with NPCs, insisting on making different voices for all of them and theatrically delivering the information they had as the players asked questions. With more details, they decided to spend the night in the village and start their trek the next day.

“Well then, lad and ladies, who gets to share the bed with me?” Gavin asked, which drew another round of groans from his friends.

“Who cares, dickhead,?” Michael laughed. 

“I do, Michael! I like to know what the sleeping arrangements are so I can really, you know, get into the story!” Gavin protested.

“As a bard, you should know the rules of chivalry, and let the ladies take the bed,” Ryan suggested. “You and Michael can sleep on the floor.”

“But-” Gavin started, but cut himself off. “Fine, I’ll snuggle with Michael on the floor. Er, Pubert will snuggle with Gronk on the floor.” Ryan snorted at Gavin’s character name, as he always did.

They spent a few moments establishing which spells the magic users would prepare for the next day’s adventure before getting sidetracked, as they always did.

“Okay, so today at work Matt asked me to put together some speaking notes for a project townhall thing he’s presenting at next week,” Meg started. Ryan groaned, knowing what was coming. “Yeah, exactly, and like always he had to, like, detail the message he wanted me to present, which, like, I didn’t need a novel, I know the message, I _built_ the message framework.” She took a long drink from her cup, emptying it and passing it to Michael for a refill. “Like, I could recreate the standard deck from scratch if the shared drive ever goes down-”

“Which it won’t,” Ryan inserted.

“Yes, thank you, I know you would never let that happen, but should such a disaster ever occur, I could do it. And he insists on acting like it’s my first fuckin day,” Meg finished her rant with a sigh, wordlessly taking back the refilled cup Michael handed her and taking another sip. “I just really needed to hang out with you guys and be around people who trust me to know what I am doing.”

“You know,” Ryan said. “IT may be a soul sucking job, but at least I don’t have to deal with that bull shit.”

“So Pubert wakes up in Gronk’s arms,” Gavin said pointedly, trying to draw attention back to the game and away from Meg and Ryan bitching about work, which they could do for hours. At least they hadn’t started on anime right off, else then Michael would join in and then they would never get to battle a monster.

“Gronk is very confused,” Michael returned, his voice gone deep and gravelly as he spoke in character. “And a little aroused.” Gavin grinned at him and opened his mouth to reply when Ryan interrupted him. 

“Okay, you all wake up and meet in the inn’s common room for breakfast,” he cut in, curtailing any attempt by Gavin to take the game down a more adult path, which he tried to do at least once every gaming session, whether his fellow players were in the mood for that kind of silliness or not.

Much to Gavin’s disappointment, the party moved on and began their search for their quarry, which involved a lot of perception rolls. Gavin did try to sing another spell to buff Meg’s ability, but his terrible dice roll actually put her at a disadvantage, as Ryan declared his off tune singing had distracted her.

“At least I’m cute?” Gavin offered when Michael glared at him for fucking it up (again. It was a recurring theme in this campaign.)

“You’re alright, for a human,” Meg sneered, but the laughter she kept out of her voice was all in her eyes.

To everyone’s astonishment, Gavin was actually the one to spot the clue Ryan had been steering them toward, and they followed him along until he stumbled into a clearing filled with a band of unsavory looking monster trophy hunters.

Despite Gavin’s best attempts to bluff their way out, a pitched battle ensued. While Michael broke out extra die to roll for his brute’s attacks, Meg used her character Lady Elithia’s high initiative roll to pull Pubert out of sight behind a tree, where he could cast his surprisingly effective combat spells without getting knocked sideways by an enemy weapon.

“So, you pull Pubert out of the way and push him behind a tree?” Ryan clarified.

“Yeah,” Meg said, nodding. “And I cover his mouth so he doesn’t squawk out of surprise.”

“Good plan. Okay, roll acrobatics,” Ryan instructed. Meg succeeded the roll and the characters continued until Gavin’s turn.

“So, Meg- Er, Lady Elithia has me pinned against a tree then?” Gav asked. At Meg’s nod, he continued, “So I say ‘ _That hardwood you feel, that’s the tree,_ ’” He grinned and winked in Meg’s direction.

Ryan groaned, and Michael balled up a piece of scrap paper and threw it at Gavin’s head. The Brit ducked out of the way, smiling wide the whole time.

Once they had calmed back down, the fight continued. It was relatively easy to run off the majority of the trophy hunters, once Michael had felled two of their biggest men and Meg had assassinated another. Lindsay had just completed her call to the surrounding animals to help them destroy the camp when the last hunter ran off.

“I loot the camp,” Meg claims immediately. Ryan detailed the disappointing haul, then suggested that they have reached a good point to break for the night.

“Aww, come on, Ryan, don’t be lame,” Lindsay whined.

“I have a puppy and strict work hours,” he deadpanned in return. “Just because you can set your own hours and sleep in when you need to, doesn’t mean everyone can.” Lindsay stuck her tongue out at him good naturedly.

“Hey, Ry-bread?” Meg asked. “Think you can give me a ride home? Lindsay picked up me and Michael from work today.”

“Yeah, sure, _Meggles_ ,” Ryan returned, teasing as he packed up his books. Michael held up the plate of dip, which had just a little bit left. Ryan groaned and grabbed one last apple to gather the rest of the dessert.

Meg and Lindsay gathered the plates and glasses, carrying them into the kitchen. Gav was concentrating on packing his own papers into a plastic folder and glanced up through the doorway into the kitchen.

Meg was leaning into Lindsay and pressing a kiss to the other girl’s mouth. The kiss was brief, both of them pulling away and smiling before exiting the room through opposite doorways. One of those girl things, Gavin figured, they are usually much more affectionate with each other than guys are

“Okay, babe, you ready?” Meg asked, grabbing her oversized purse and slinging it onto her shoulder. Ryan nodded and the pair walked out the door, chatting animatedly.

“Meg remembers that Ryan is married, right?” Gavin asked after the door has swung shut.

Michael looked at him quizzically, “What do you mean? He wears a ring, he’s always talking about his wife, of course she knows.”

“Yeah, but like, she’s constantly flirting. ‘S just weird,” Gavin said with a shrug. Michael and Lindsay exchanged a pointed look behind his back before bidding their friend good night.

*****

Gavin didn’t have the same rigid nine-to-five kind of job that Ryan, Meg, and Michael had, but neither was he free to do his work whenever he pleased, like Lindsay. As a freelance cameraman, he picked up gigs when and where he could, mostly for commercials, occasionally for narrative pieces, or even stock footage when he needed to make ends meet. His work took him all over the city, and he found himself in the tech-industrial sector around lunch.

“Michael my boi!” he greeted when his friend answered the phone.

“Hey, Gav, what’s up?” Michael replied, though he seemed distracted. Gavin could hear a voice speaking low in the background.

“Sorry, have I got you at a bad time? I was just checking to see if you had lunch plans, I’m in the area, we could go grab a quick bite.”

“Yeah, no, that sounds good. Just let me finish up here and I’ll meet you out in the back lot?” Michael phrased it as a question, but hung up before Gavin could confirm, though not before he heard Michael saying something and a giggle from the other person in the room.

Gavin drove to the sprawling single story building where Michael, Ryan and Meg all worked. He and Michael had been friends since their days in university, so when Michael mentioned a couple of the nerds he worked with wanted to do some tabletop RPG style gaming, Gavin had jumped at the chance. It had been a weird coincidence that Michael’s writer then-girlfriend-now-wife had done community theatre with Ryan when they were younger. For a large city, Austin was sometimes a very small town. They’d had a weekly gaming night for a few years now, and Gavin considered all of them to be the greatest of friends.

He was pulled up to the curb, just outside the door he knew from experience Michael would be coming out. Movement in his peripheral caught his attention and he turned to see Michael and another figure just inside the double doors. Gavin smiled when he recognized the brilliantly coloured hair as Meg’s. He was just about to honk when he saw them move against the wall of the breezeway, Michael pressing Meg against it and leaning down to kiss her.

Pale arms encircled Michael’s neck, fingers lacing together just as Michael straightened and pulled his mouth away. Even at a distance, Gavin could see their wide grins.

Meg stood on tip-toe and kissed the end of Michael’s nose before letting her arms fall and walking back through the interior doors, turning to give him a little wave as she walked out of sight.

Gavin watched Michael jog to the car and slide into the passenger seat, nothing in his body language or manner any different than normal, as if he hadn’t just been kissing a woman who was not his wife. Gavin was still in shock.

“Gav? You in there?” he startled as Michael’s words punctured the fog he was swimming in. “Yoo hoo, earth to Gavin?”

“Uh, yeah, hey boi,” Gavin managed to get out.

“Sounds like you need some food, where should we go?” Michael asked, pulling the seatbelt on.

“Uh, I dunno. You pick,” Gavin tried to maintain an even keel, a sense of normality as they fell back into old routines.

*****

Gavin was still mulling over the implications of his best friend, his boi, a man who declared his wife “the greatest woman in the world” whenever he was asked, was _cheating_ on her. Not just cheating, but cheating on her with her very good friend, if the little lip lock Gavin had seen was any indication.

He tried to rationalize it, tried to tell himself that maybe he hallucinated the whole thing (not possible), maybe he’d seen wrong (he hadn’t), maybe it was just a couple kisses and nothing else had happened (highly unlikely). 

Gavin knew that he needed to say something. He was well aware of how beautiful and fun and sexy Meg was, but Lindsay was Michael’s other half. When they had started dating it was like they just fit together, shared interests, similar goals, and chemistry so strong they couldn’t keep their eyes off each other. They’d only been married for a couple of years! Gavin couldn’t understand how Michael could put a relationship with such a wonderful woman in jeopardy.

Then again, Michael had always been somehow unaware of how attractive he was. His infectious grin, those freckles, his intense passion for the things and people he cared about were obvious to Gavin, but his friend brushed off any compliments lobbed in his direction as baseless flattery. Maybe Meg had broken through that and Michael had been overwhelmed? 

Gavin hadn’t known Meg as long as he had the others, but they had hung out a few times outside of gaming, and he was kind of surprised that she was apparently the kind of girl who would sleep with a married man. He had always thought she had a bit of a thing for Ryan, but it seemed there was just a lot of flirting and innuendo. Ryan and his wife had just adopted a puppy, and he seemed devoted to them. Maybe Michael had been more willing to step out on his relationship?

Due to his trepidation, he actually arrived after the perpetually late Ryan, and was unusually quiet while they set up. Michael set a bottle of beer in front of him, and they continued their journey to find and kill the horrible monster that was terrorizing the village.

Now that he was looking for it, he caught Michael watching Meg with a look on his face that was close to the one he had when he looked at Lindsay with when they first started dating. He was smiling in her direction, his eyes sparking and his cheeks a bit pink. From the way they shifted their bodies, Gavin would put money on guessing that they were playing footsie under the table, which he thought was a bit forward with Michael’s wife right next to them.

Meg sent shy, flirty glances through her lashes back at him, a small smile teasing her lips when she found him looking back at her. Gavin was getting more and more angry watching them, and was just about to ask Michael for a word in private so he could chew him out when he saw something that made him pause.

Meg was sending the same looks to Lindsay.

Lindsay was sat on the other side of Meg, and Gavin watched as Meg swung her head around, pulling her hair over her other shoulder and sending Lindsay what he could only assume were called “bedroom eyes”. 

“You’re unusually quiet tonight, Gavin,” Ryan commented. “Feeling okay?”

“Yeah, where’s all the overly aggressive flirting with all of the rest of us?” Michael asked, kicking him under the table. Kicking him with the same feet that had been playing footsie with Meg. Gavin was still trying to wrap his head around it.

“Uh, yeah, sorry boi,” Gavin apologized. “A bit off tonight, I guess.”

They continued to play, Gavin making an effort to engage more, though he didn’t quite get up to the flirtation levels he usually did. Once Ryan advised them they had reached a good spot to stop for the night, they started packing up.

“Hey Ryan?” Gavin asked, the tone familiar to the others.

“Your car is in the shop and you need a ride home?” Ryan guessed, taking one last handful from the candy-filled “Jar of Diabetes” before Lindsay screwed the top on.

“Yeah.” Gavin admitted. His car was not old or poorly maintained, but it still managed to end up in at the mechanics at least twice a month. It had become a running joke that Gavin always needed someone to bring a backup vehicle when they went somewhere.

“Sure, no problem. Meg? You need a ride too?” Ryan offered.

“No,” Meg answered quickly. “I’m gonna stay for a bit, Lindsay can give me a ride when I’m ready.” Lindsay, still sitting at the table, nodded in confirmation.

Gavin waited until they were in the car and out onto the main road before speaking up about his suspicions. “Hey Ryan?”

“Yeah, Gav?” 

“Did you notice-, uh, I mean, do you think-, it’s just...I think Michael and Lindsay might be banging Meg,” Gavin’s words were all jumbled, the stops and starts making it hard for Ryan to figure out where he was going with his question until it fell out of his mouth all at once.

“Really, Gav?” Ryan replied, keeping his eyes on the road but glancing at his passenger seat to gauge his reaction.

“What do you mean, really?” Gav’s voice took on a note of tension. “I mean, I saw Meg and Lindsay kissing last week, and then I see her snogging Michael and work, and I thought he might be cheating on her, but then I see them all eye-fucking tonight and I think the three of them have formed some kind of unholy alliance.”

“I mean, yeah,” Ryan replied smugly. “They’ve been together for a couple months. Are you saying you seriously didn’t see it before now?”

At the stop light Ryan was finally able to look over at Gavin, who had been shocked into silence.

“What- you- you you you knew?” Gavin stuttered. “How could you- Oh, Meg’s gone and told you, didn’t she?”

Ryan chuckled. “Yeah, I mean, she tells me everything,” he admitted. “But is it really that surprising? They haven’t exactly been subtle.”

The next few moments were filled with Gavin’s squawks. “But how come they told you and not me?” Gavin asked. “I’ve known them way longer than you have!”

“I don’t know, man, that’s between you and Michael,” Ryan said, trying to distance himself.

“But- Like, how are you okay with this?” Gavin’s voice had gone from shocked to something close to disgust. “It’s not right, is it? I mean, for a one night thing maybe, but like, a relationship?” When Ryan didn’t comment, he continued, “A single person with a married couple, makes me think the marriage isn’t going to well.”

Ryan raised an eyebrow in Gavin’s direction. “Hey, it’s their lives, they can do what - or who - they want. Live and let live and all that,” he said. “And from what I’ve seen when someone criticizes her sexuality, I suggest you don’t mention to Meg how you feel about poly relationships.”

“I mean, you’re married,” Gavin pointed out.

“Correct. I am indeed married.”

“Like, how would you feel if your wife wanted to start banging someone? Or, like, the both of you to bang someone together?” Gavin couldn’t stop twisting the strap of his bag between his hands, wrapping it around one palm and pulling tight, then releasing it and doing the same to the other.

“Hey, man, my relationship with my wife is different from Michael and Lindsay’s,” Ryan explained. 

“It just doesn’t make any sense! They’re with each other, they found their match, they made their choice!” Gavin’s voice was rising again. “And Meg! Why on earth would a single girl like her, who could have _anyone_ , fall in with a married couple?”

Ryan stayed silent again, waiting for Gavin to calm his ranting.

“I mean, I know they’re great people, Linds is just beautiful and kind and all, and Michael...well, Michael is my boi. So I guess I get that, but...why would she want to get in between that?”

They pulled up in front of the row house Gavin rented. Ryan shut off the engine and twisted in his seat to face Gavin. 

“Look,” he said seriously. “Meg and Lindsay and Michael are together, and they are _happy_. You are their _friend_. If you can’t just let them live their lives and be happy for them, well...I guess you aren’t the guy I thought you were.”

“No! No, I’d never- I don’t mean to, like, be mean about it,” Gavin was quick to reply. “It’s just weird to me is all.”

“Well, it sounds to me like it might be less weirdness freaking you out and more like you might be a bit jealous?” Ryan suggested. When Gavin was shocked into silence, he continued, “Not that it’s any of my business, whatever floats your goat and all.” He started to correct his flub, but Gavin hadn’t even reacted.

Gavin mumbled a thanks and goodbye before stepping out of the car, returning to his home to have a good long think about things.

***** 

Gavin managed to avoid hanging out with the others all week, between his lack of car and gigs to work his schedule was full. He still wasn’t sure how he felt about the whole poly relationships his friends were in, but Ryan’s suggestion that it might be jealousy had made his heart do a backflip, so that had to mean something. He nearly chickened out and got as far as typing a text to Michael with a lie about being sick, but decided he needed to be a man about all this and face it head on.

He made an effort to try and act like everything was back to normal, or at least as close to normal as he ever got. He arrived early, collapsed onto the couch with Meg and chatted about his day. He saw looks between the three of them, but the ones that gave him the most pause were the ones between Michael and Lindsay. Their love for each other had always been the obvious, in-your-face kind, with dirty jokes and frustrated kisses ending petty arguments, but now they were showing a softer kind of love. They smiled softly at each other, lingering touches as they moved around the kitchen and living room, preparing for the game. 

Ryan arrived only a little bit late, weathered the usual teasing, and settled in at the head of the table. He made sure to make eye contact with Gavin and raise his eyebrows in silent question. Gavin smiled at him and nodded, hoping Ryan knew that meant he was doing okay and wasn’t going to freak out on his friends.

As was his custom, Gavin made sure to ask about sleeping arrangements. This time, though, rather than singling out one party member to make an incredibly unsubtle move on, he suggested that perhaps he had grown cold in the night and snuggled in between Lady Elithia and Carrot, Lindsay’s dwarf, who had shared the bed once again.

Ryan raised an eyebrow at him, but declined to comment.

The group finally found the monster, or rather, monsters which had been terrorizing the village. A small herd of evil centaurs had taken advantage of a local legend, and started passing around an elaborate costume when they raided the village and attacked travellers. The battle was pitched, Gavin’s bard nearly died before Carrot was able to heal him. Pubert the bard declared his love for her, and for Mogar protecting his prone body, and for Lady Elithia who assassinated the last foe. 

Gavin was getting into the roleplaying aspect, modulating his voice as he got injured and then nearly yelling in celebration as the fight ended with them victorious. He leaned over and wrapped an arm around Michael, pulling the other man towards him into a half-hug, as he described his character doing the same.

Ryan watched him with widened eyes, subtly shaking his head. Gavin realized he must be taking it a bit _too_ far and sank back in his chair. 

In the game, the adventurers returned to the village and claimed their reward. “Well, that’s a good place to stop for the night,” Ryan said, snapping his DMG closed.

 _Before I embarrass myself,_ Gavin supposed that was why Ryan hadn’t started the next quest. He watched the others as they packed up and thought once again that Ryan was really a lot wiser than anyone gave him credit for.

*****

Gavin admitted to himself that all the feelings he had been calling platonic toward his three friends were probably more close to romantic, but he had never seen them as available before. Their polyamorous relationship had opened up that door and he was going to try his best to walk through it.

On Friday he called up Michael, knowing he would catch his friend scrambling to finish things up before taking off for the weekend.

“Hey Gav, what’s up?” Michael answered his phone, words clipped and rushed.

“Hey, boi, just checkin in,” Gavin replied. “What are you up to tonight?”

“Just the usual, hanging out with Linds, Meg’s coming over I think,” Michael said. Gavin could hear his keyboard clicking away as he typed while talking, only half paying attention to the conversation.

“Sounds like fun!” Gavin said cheerily. “I’ll be there around six.” He hung up the phone before Michael could object. He wasn’t sure if Michael would have objected to him inviting himself along to what he could only assume was date night, but he didn’t want to give him the chance. Done with his work for the day, he turned his phone off for good measure.

When he arrived at Michael and Lindsay’s apartment that evening, Lindsay was home by herself. Michael had gone to the store to grab some extra things for supper (muttering the whole time about inconsiderate Brits, Lindsay told Gavin) and Meg had gone for a run after work.

“This is nice,” he commented, setting onto the couch next to Lindsay’s armchair. She settled her laptop over onto the table next to her and smiled at him.

“Yeah? What do you mean?” she asked.

“This, you and me,” he returned. “I hardly ever get to hang out with just you. ‘S lovely is all.”

Gavin saw a blush spread across Lindsay’s fair cheeks. He smiled sweetly at her, thinking how much he truly did enjoy her company.

“So, what are you working on?” he asked, trying to get her talking about her work.

Before she could answer, Michael burst in the door, followed by a sweaty Meg, both of them carrying shopping bags, and laughing about something.

“Well look who showed up, after inviting himself for supper, and then not returning my texts so he could at least bring the extra shit to feed him,” Michael commented loudly, setting his bag and the one he took from Meg onto the counter in the kitchen.

“Sorry, boi!” Gavin called in his direction, his smile showing no such emotion. “Good to see you too!”

Meg grabbed her bag, saying, “I’m gonna hop in the shower!” as she headed for the apartment’s bathroom. Gavin would have raised an eyebrow that she was working out and showering at their friend’s home, had he not become aware of the relationship developing there. He wondered how close they were to Meg moving in with the couple.

Gavin moved into the kitchen, where Michael was pulling ingredients out of both the bags on the counter, as well as the fridge and pantry. Gavin jumped up and sat on the counter next to the bags.

“Hey, Michael, whatcha doin’?” he drawled.

Michael stopped his constant movement and met his gaze. “What does it look like?,” he asked. “I’m cooking supper.”

“Cool cool,” Gavin replied, swinging his feet a little as Michael worked around him. After a couple of moments, he asked, “So what’s for supper then?”

“You mean the meal you invited yourself over for?” Michael shot back. “Nothing, for you, You can feed your own damn self.”

“Ah ah ah, you already said extra had been bought for me,” Gavin said. “Can’t take that back now.”

Michael smiled without looking at him at the teasing. “Yeah, well, I guess I’m a sucker,” he concluded. Gavin laughed, watching his friend’s eyes sparkle in amusement.

They chatted about the usual trivialities: work, video games, their families and other friends. Meg strolled into the kitchen, dressed in comfortable leggings and an oversized shirt and toweling her hair just as Michael was putting the pizza he had assembled into the oven.

Meg frowned at him. “Salad?” she asked, looking around for the other dish.

Michael shrugged. “If you want one, you know where the stuff is,” he told her. She threw her towel in Michael’s face and bumped against Gavin’s legs, trying to push him out of the way.

“Gee, Turney, you’ve been hanging out here a lot,” Gavin commented, watching her pull dishes out of the cupboards on the first try and turning to gather ingredients from the fridge. “Might almost think you like these two better than me.”

He smiled when he saw the look Meg and Michael exchanged.

*****

They were all sat around the table, the same one used on gaming nights, and were enjoying their meal when Gavin blurted, “So, when were you guys going to tell me you were all banging?”

Lindsay’s fork clattered against the table and the three lovers exchanged panicked looks. “We’re not-” Lindsay started.

“Don’t,” Michael told his wife. “He’s not that dumb.”

“Thank you, Michael,” Gavin said quickly. 

“We haven’t exactly been subtle,” Meg admitted.

“I guess we’d have to have been fairly obvious if Gav was able to spot it,” Lindsay agreed.

“Oi!,” Gavin objected with a laugh. 

The silence grew for a moment, the tension back in the room while no one was sure what to say next.

“About 3 months,” Meg said suddenly, her voice loud in contrast to the preceding quiet.

“Almost three wot?” Gavin asked, confused, before her words clicked into place in his mind. “Oh, you’ve been banging for that long, and you never told me?”

“Gav, it’s more than just- It’s not just sex,” Lindsay said, reaching to take Michael’s hand, who in turn grasped one of Meg’s on his other side. 

“I mean, there’s definitely sex,” Michael added. “Ooh boy is there sex.”

Lindsay rolled her eyes, but continued, “We know it’s not normal-”

“Common,” Meg interjected. “It’s not common, but it’s perfectly normal.”

Lindsay nodded at her girlfriend. “Right. Still working on this whole polyamory thing ourselves. It’s not common, but it works for us.”

As if they’d planned it, all three of the others turned to look at Gavin at once. His head twitched around, trying to meet all their gazes at once.

“What are you all looking at me for!?” Gavin exclaimed.

“I think we’re kind of waiting for your reaction,” Michael said.

Gavin paused thoughtfully for a moment. “I think it’s lovely,” he concluded, picking up his pizza and taking a bite.

The others just stared. 

“Nice?” Michael asked. “What, no calling us freaks, or telling me how lucky I am to be fucking two girls - _which I am by the way_ -” he added hastily at the sharp look Meg sent him.

Gavin just shook his head. “Naw, it’s just nice,” he reiterated. “I mean, I kind of freaked out when I thought you were cheating on Linds, Michael, but once I figured it out and thought about it for a bit, it’s just lovely. You’re all lucky, cause you’ve got even more love, yeah?”

Meg watched him carefully, narrowing her eyes. “You are disturbingly okay with this.”

Gavin shrugged. They didn’t need to know about his week of internal freaking out.

*****

By the next gaming night, Gavin had talked himself into and out of his plan about a dozen times. His jealousy over the new thruple was not only for their newfound romance, but also because he desired some kind of relationship with them as well. Since he was too awkward to just say it outright, he had hatched an elaborate plan that basically boiled down to “flirt with all of them and see what they do” to test out the waters.

Gavin set the stage, claiming a seat between Michael and Lindsay, rather than his usual one next to Ryan. He made lots of eye contact, especially when drinking or bringing a piece of food to his mouth. He tried his best to look alluring and sexy (Ryan was wondering if he had developed some sort of facial paralyzation that was causing him to pull such strange faces). His quarry was, to his great disappointment, seemingly unaware of these _moves_ he was laying down. 

“Okay, you are walking along the wooded path. What is your marching order?” Ryan asked.

“I’ll take the rear,” Gavin said quickly, earning puzzled looks from the others. 

“Gav, Pubert is nearly unarmed. What if something attacks us from behind?” Meg reminded him.

“Yeah, but we’re walking uphill and it’ll be such a nice view,” he returned.

“Won’t we be in your way?” Lindsay asked.

“Well, that’s the nice view, innit?” Gavin said, his words smarmy. “Front row seats for the Top Bottom Parade.”

Michael rolled his eyes at his best friend’s foolishness. “Don’t worry, Gav, Meg will bring up the rear and if something attacks you can ogle her then.”

As the game progressed, the adventurers set up camp for the night. “Uh, Carrot and Pubert can take first watch,” Gavin suggested. Turning to Lindsay, he dropped his voice to a stage whisper. “What do you say we sneak off behind a tree? We could make out a bit and none would be the wiser!”

Lindsay’s face was a mixture of confusion and amusement. “Is- is this meta-gaming, or are you trying to flirt with me?”

Gavin just winked and turned back to the game.

A random encounter with a pack of dire wolves left them all hurting, and Gavin used his Cure Moderate Wounds spell to bring Michael back to nearly full health. When Ryan did a survey of their hit points before they moved on, Gavin revealed that Pubert was down to three.

“What the fuck you idiot?!” Michael burst out. “Why’d you waste your spell on me? I was only at half health, not at death’s door!”

Gavin shrugged. “You’re my boy,” he said simply. “Plus, if anything else comes along, you’re more likely to be able to protect the girls.”

Michael just stared at him until Meg kicked him beneath the table.

A natural twenty on a perception roll in just the right place led Pubert to a chest buried under a tree, the contents of which Ryan wrote down on a piece of paper for Gavin to read, as none of the others were close enough to see what he found.

“All right, the book goes to Carrot, I’ve no need for it, and I hand the gold dagger to Lady Elithia,” he proclaimed. When Meg looked at him without speaking, he continued, “What? It’s got some kind of spell on it that makes it sharp all the time. You’re the one who likes to get all stabby.”

“But-” Meg started, then shook her head. She wasn’t going to bring up that he could have traded it to her if he wasn’t going to. Gavin shot her a huge close-mouthed smile.

He continued playing, but it was like his constant flirting was turned up to eleven. Gavin was making passes at them, turning everything into a dirty joke, taking every opportunity to touch them, all in game of course. 

Michael, Lindsay, and Meg exchanged looks, all of them had noticed Gavin’s amplified behaviour. Now all he had to do was wait for them to suggest he stick around after the session was over…

Gavin took his time packing up his things, chatting the whole while. He was a little surprised when Meg asked Ryan for a ride home, but maybe Michael and Lindsay wanted to approach him together, since they were the more established couple?

When Lindsay gave an exaggerated yawn and said she was off to bed, he got the hint and shuffled off to his own car and drove home.

*****

Gavin did not hear from Michael all week, not until he got a text inviting him to come over and play Mario Party. 

Gavin sighed. “This will be my life,” he said to himself. “Playing _fourth_ wheel.” He replied that he would be there, and started steeling himself for an evening of learning to let go of his jealousy and be happy for his friends. Hopping in his car, he drove the short distance to Michael and Lindsay’s apartment.

He knocked twice and walked in without waiting for an answer, as was his habit. Meg and Lindsay were cuddled on the couch, and Meg’s face was buried in the crook of Lindsay’s neck. They both looked up when Gavin entered.

“Oh! Sorry,” Gavin mumbled an apology. “Guess I should wait for a go-ahead before I burst in now, shouldn’t I?”

Lindsay and Meg separated slightly, and Lindsay shrugged. “Never have before,” she said. “Why start now?”

Gavin shrugged and went to find Michael, who was sitting at his desk in the second bedroom they used as an office. Gavin flopped down onto the futon that he occasionally crashed on when he had too much to drink. “Hey, boi,” he greeted.

“Gavvers!” Michael said. He turned away from the screen and spun his chair toward his friend. “Glad you could make it! How was your day?”

A little startled by Michael actually giving him his undivided attention. “Uh, fine, I guess?” he stumbled over his words. “You?”

“Aw, I’m good. Why don’t we go join the girls and figure out what we wanna do for food,” Michael stood and guided Gavin out of the room. 

The girls were still in the living room, but they’d put some kind of police procedural on the television and Meg was now sitting on the floor in front of Lindsay, who was running her hands through Meg’s blue hair and twining it around her fingers. Meg’s eyes were half closed, and she let out little groans of hedonistic pleasure every time Lindsay’s nails scraped along her scalp.

“So, thoughts on food?” Michael asked as he claimed his usual seat at the other end of the couch, and Lindsay patted the middle seat next to her, inviting Gavin to sit. The couch was of average size, but small enough that one of Gavin’s legs was brushing up against each of the other people sitting with him. He murmured an apology to Meg when his foot his her hip as he situated himself.

Gavin sat stiffly between Michael and Lindsay, who were not as circumspect and let their bodies fall toward the centre of the couch. He was sitting so far forward that he couldn’t even see them out his peripheral when he was staring straight ahead, which he was doing as he watched the tv screen, trying hard not to let his turbulent inner thought process show. 

Meg shattered his concentration when she turned her body toward him, placing one forearm across his knee and leaning her chin on it. “What do you feel like, Gavvy?” she asked sweetly, batting her eyelashes at him. “You wanna play a round or two before we go out for a bite, or maybe stay in and let the food come to us?”

“Erm- Uh- whatever you guys want is fine with me,” Gavin said.

The silence was uncomfortable, because Gavin could feel both Lindsay and Michael leaning back to presumably engage in the same form of wordless communication Meg was attempting from where she sat below them. He was afraid to turn to look at them, unsure of what exactly was going on.

“Ahm,” Michael cleared his throat. “Gav, you know, if you want - and, like, only if you want - no pressure or anything, we, uh, we were thinking that maybe if it was cool with you-”

“This is a date,” Lindsay blurted out, unable to contain herself any longer.

“Damnit Lindsay, could you _not_ spoil just **one** thing?” Michael yelled.

“I’m sorry, I’m sorry!” his wife said. “I get excited!”

“You can’t just spring that shit on someone-”

“Guys-”

“Well you were taking forever! If we waited for you we’d be here for-”

“ **Guys** ,” Meg shouted this time. Both Michael and Lindsay quieted down and looked at their girlfriend expectantly. “Did you forget what you were trying to do?”

Michael’s eyes widened and looked to Gavin. “Sorry, Gav,” he said quietly.

Gavin leaned back, slumping into the middle of the couch. “You guys- this is a date?”

“Only if you want it to be, baby,” Meg assured him, rubbing his thigh to comfort him. “We don’t want to railroad you, a poly relationship can be a lot to handle.”

“But-” Gavin started, but trailed off.

“But what?” Lindsay prodded.

“You didn’t say anything at gaming,” Gavin said, his words almost pouty. “I was laying it on as thick as I could and I thought you’d all, like, give me a sign or invite me to stay or something, but you sent me home. I was preparing myself for life as a fourth wheel to a thruple.”

Michael shook his head. “You idiot,” he said fondly. “We couldn’t very well ask you to stay without all talking it over first.”

“Yeah,” Meg agreed. “I mean, we’d talked about it in a what-if kind of way, but we make decisions _together_ , and inviting another person into our relationship is a pretty big decision.”

Gavin smirked at all of them in turn. “You talked about me before? Like, when?”

Lindsay knocked into him with her elbow, sending him falling into Michael. “Don’t push it, Free,” she warned.

“So, I take it this is a date then?” Michael asked hesitantly. 

“Yeah,” Gavin assured him. He turned to smile at his friend but his grin faded when he saw the intense look on Michael’s face.

“Do you kiss on the first date then?” Michael asked, his voice gone low and gravelly.

Gavin nodded, slowly leaning forward and tilting his head a bit to keep their noses from colliding, but Michael was impatient. He took Gavin’s face between his hands and brought their mouths together, smooshing lips, teeth, and noses against one another. 

He pulled away only to have other hands turning him in the opposite direction, Lindsay grabbing his face the same way Michael had but kissing him more gently, allowing their lips to slide against each other ever so briefly before a small hand fisted in the front of his shirt and pulled him forward.

Meg had risen to her knees and met him halfway, moving her hand from his shirt into his hair and curling into his carefully mussed locks. She was more insistent, her tongue pressing between his lips and slipping into his mouth. As they kissed, Meg climbed up onto the couch and onto Gavin, straddling his hips with her legs wedged between him and the others.

When she finally released him, Gavin was panting. His hands were around Meg’s hips, holding her steady on his lap, and he sat back again.

“Just so you know, if this really is a date, I’m not a cheap one,” he commented breathlessly.

*****

Michael and Gavin’s arms were loaded down with grocery bags, because neither of them were going to make a trip back to the car. It was a matter of pride. The challenge was getting harder as the Jones’s two person household had added two part-time members with Gavin and Meg spending more and more time there. Gavin had only accompanied Michael on the grocery shopping excursion because Michael had demanded he pay for some of the groceries he consumed.

Gavin’s fingers were starting to lose grip just as Michael unlocked the door and pushed it open with his shoulder, so he dropped the bags and squawked when he ran into Michael’s back when the other man stopped suddenly in the doorway.

“Oi!” he objected, peering around Michael to see what had made him stop so suddenly.

“I don’t think I’ll ever get tired of that,” Michael said quietly. Gavin stepped around him, moving the fallen groceries with his feet and letting the front door close behind them, unable to take his eyes off the couch any more than Michael had been able to move once he’d seen it.

“Same,” Gavin agreed.

Meg had Lindsay pinned against one of the arms of the couch they must have been cuddling on. While Meg had the advantage of position, Lindsay wasn’t shrinking against her, pressing up against the other woman and wrapping one arm around Meg to cup her ass while her other hand was up Meg’s shirt, groping her breast. Meg was arching against Lindsay, her hips rolling rhythmically where she straddled her girlfriend’s thigh, grinding against her. 

Lindsay’s head fell back against the arm as Meg’s mouth moved along her clavicle and down toward her exposed breasts, her shirt and bra hanging off the arm chair. She spotted the men at the door and smiled, giving them a wink.

“Look who’s home,” Lindsay purred, pulling her hand out of Meg’s shirt. “Bout time you got here.”

“Don’t- don’t stop on our account,” Gavin stuttered, slowly moving into the room, shopping bags forgotten.

“Can I - may we watch?” Michael asked. The intricacies of navigating a four person relationship were still a work in progress, so they had firm rules about communicating. Consent was always solicited, whether engaging , observing, or being observed. They all needed to feel close to the others individually, as well as in a group, so pairing off was common, and they all respected that. 

Meg and Lindsay’s eyes met and they shrugged, nearly in unison. “I’ve got no objection,” Meg said. 

“Just -,” Lindsay started, then gasped when Meg pinched her nipple deliberately. “Can you make sure none of the groceries are gonna melt all over the tile?” 

Michael and Gavin both startled to remember the bags they had been carrying, and rushed to deposit them on the counter, pulling the frozen and refrigerated items out and filing them in their proper locations.

Gavin caught Michael up against the fridge as he spun around trying to gather things. He kissed Michael quick but hard, briefly opening his lips and snaking his tongue into the other man’s mouth. Gavin pressed his hips against Michael’s, yearning for the friction against his half-hard cock, the answering moan telling him the message had been received. Cheekily brushing his hand across Michael’s own tented jeans, he turned and walked back to the living room, where Meg had been hard at work.

Lindsay’s pants had now joined her other clothes on the armchair, as well as Meg’s bra which had been pulled off when her dress straps were pushed off her shoulders and halfway down her torso.

Gavin scampered to claim the armchair, with its prime view of the action on the couch. Michael nearly beat him there, and punched him in the arm when he dropped into it. Gavin looped his arm around Michael’s waist, pulling the other man down into his lap. Michael flushed, squirming until Gavin palmed his erection through his pants and shifted so his own was pressing against Michael’s ass.

“You girls are gorgeous,” Gavin said, his voice gone low and gravelly as it did when he was aroused. He watched Meg kiss her way down Lindsay’s belly, thumbs digging into the soft flesh and sucking red marks all down her torso. Lindsay arched her back, unsubtle with her encouragement for Meg to get a move on.

“He’s right, you are, Linds,” Meg murmured, her fingers sliding under the waistband of the bikini cut cotton panties that were the only clothing still left on her girlfriend. “You’re the kind they write epic poems about.” 

A blush crept over Lindsay’s body at the praise. She glanced over at her husband, who was smiling languidly while Gavin continued to massage his clothed dick.

“Pussy so bomb you go on an odyssey to get back to it,” Meg continued, drawing the laugh she wanted out of Lindsay, who sat forward and pulled Meg’s face up to hers.

“I love you, nerd,” Lindsay said fondly.

Meg scrunched up her nose at having been pulled away from her objective. “Love you too,” she said. “Now help me get these panties off.” Lindsay laughed again and raised her hips, allowing Meg to slip her panties down her legs and resume her position with face between Lindsay’s thighs.

Gavin had been at work removing barriers as well. He’d undone the fly of Michael’s jeans and pushed pants and underwear alike out of the way until he could wrap his fist around Michael’s cock. Michael leaned back into Gav with a moan, pressing back into him while still trying to keep an eye on the ladies on the couch.

Lindsay let out little moans from deep in her chest and heard echoing sounds from her husband across the room where Gavin was stroking his dick and laying wet kisses along his neck. She saw both men watching her and Meg intently and curled up into a half seated position to grab at Meg’s dress, pulling the skirt up and exposing the thong underneath.

Michael let out a deep groan. “Meg you have no idea how hot your ass looks right now,” he growled.

With a kiss to Lindsay’s inner thigh as an apology, Meg raised her head and looked back at the boys, eyes heavy lidded and pupils blown wide with her own arousal. She drank in the sight of the two of them on the chair, the contrast of darker haired pale MIchael and Gavin’s darker complexion and his dirty blonde hair making a wonderful sight. Especially with Gavin’s hand furiously sliding over Michael’s erection.

“You’re not so bad yourself,” Meg said hotly. “Wanna come over and put that cock to work showing me how hot you find my ass?” Turning back to Lindsay, she added, “If that’s okay with you?”. Lindsay nodded, and Michael levered himself up off of Gavin.

Turning back to Gavin, Michael leaned down and grabbed his face between both hands, kissing him deeply. They parted with smiles, Michael turning to join the girls and Gavin undoing his own fly and pushing his pants down to mid-thigh.

Meg’s tongue was back at work, teasing Lindsay gently and slowly driving her wild. Lindsay fisted one hand against the couch cushion, the other on Meg’s head where it lay between her legs, keeping Meg steady as she twisted, helping Michael remove her underwear.

Michael’s hands travelled up the sides of Meg’s thighs, coming together to cup her ass and massage it gently. His thumbs teased near her asshole, making Meg moan against Lindsay’s flesh which in turn drew an almost tortured noise from Lindsay. Michael’s hand slipped lower, the way slick as his fingers travelled along her slit to brush against her clit ever so briefly. 

Meg’s back arched, pressing her ass back against Michael, who twisted himself to bring his mouth to her. The little flicks of his tongue were paired with broad strokes from as far as he could reach between her legs all the way up to her lower back. He added a couple fingers thrusting into her, grinning when she moved to do the same to Lindsay.

Gavin watched from the chair, stroking himself slowly in order to prolong the pleasure. He was still a little amazed that he was dating these wonderful, beautiful people, even though it had been months since they had invited him into their relationship. His gaze went unfocused as he got lost in his own musings and his own pleasure.

“Gav,” Lindsay called to him, breaking him from his reverie and re-focusing his gaze. “You still with us?” 

Gavin nodded, smiling slowly. He noticed that Michael had moved and was now fucking Meg from behind, his hands gripping her hips tightly. He was speaking low, a constant stream of praise and dirty talk, “Damn, you’re so fuckin wet for me, love how you take my cock, yeah, you like that, don’t you? Yeah, keep lickin that pussy, uh, yeah-”

Meg’s face was rocking into Lindsay, and she was using the movement to her advantage, sticking her tongue out and letting the motion drive it over Lindsay’s clit. Lindsay beckoned to Gavin, who rose and approached her, his hand still holding his cock but the stroking motions stilled.

Lindsay twisted and pushed his hand of the way, taking his dick in her hand and pulling it, and Gavin, closer to her mouth. Gavin groaned and rocked forward, letting himself slide further past her lips. The angle wasn’t ideal, Gavin was bouncing on his toes, knees leaning against the edge of the couch, and he was hitting the side of Lindsay’s mouth rather than down her throat. It was still very pleasurable, Lindsay’s tongue was teasing the head of his cock and swirling over and around it, but not to the same extent as when she could face him head on.

Lindsay came suddenly, her mouth opening in a gasp. Her hips thrust up involuntarily as the pleasure raced through her. 

She looked up at Gavin dreamily, lips shining, and asked, “Wanna come on my tits?”

Gav startled, mouth gaping open as her hand drove him closer to orgasm. “What?” he asked.

Lindsay’s voice hardened. “Come on my tits, Gavin,” she ordered. A shiver ran through Gavin at her tone, that voice she used when she was in charge, and he took over jerking himself off.

“Come on her tits, Gav,” Michael encouraged. “Yeah.” 

The encouragement, on top of the look Lindsay was sending his way up through her lashes, licking her lips, sent Gavin over the edge. He gasped, his cum splashing down onto Lindsay’s chest. She smiled and dragged one finger through the mess, bringing it to her lips.

Michael grunted, one of his tells that he was getting close. “You good Meg?” he asked breathlessly.

“Almost,” she gasped. “Here, I’m gonna-” She reached down between her own legs, flingers dancing over her clit as her tongue had on Lindsay’s. 

Meg’s breathing hitched as she came, her fingers stilling once she started twitching with over stimulation.

“Gonna go-” Michael grunted once more, his last thrusts rocking Meg into Lindsay more violently. He sat back onto his heel, collapsing into the other end of the couch.

Gavin stood there, still mostly dressed with his softening cock hanging out of his pants and drank in the sight of his lovers, in varying states of disarray and bliss, all tangled on the couch.

A knock on the door broke him from his reverie. “Oh shit,” he barked. “Is it games night?”


End file.
